The present invention concerns vehicle bumper bars, and more particularly concerns a tubular bumper beam section with end pieces attached to each of the opposing ends for optimal fit and appearance.
Modern vehicles often include a highly stylized and aerodynamic front end design. In an effort to achieve this appearance, bumper reinforcement beams have been incorporated into such designs that include curved center sections and angled end sections that provide an increased angle at the outer front (or rear) corners of the vehicle. This results in a more rounded aerodynamic appearance at the front corners. However, it is desirable to achieve this aerodynamic appearance without sacrificing bumper strength, dimensional accuracy, or cost. It is known to manufacture swept rollformed tubular bumpers, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,566,874 and 5,306,058. These bumpers exhibit excellent strength properties and can be manufactured at a very competitive cost, but the front surfaces on their end sections are not provided with an increased/compound angle.
A multi-piece bracket can be welded or attached to an end of a rollformed swept tubular bumper. However, multi-piece brackets are more costly than desired due to their multiple pieces that must be stamped and then secured together, and then secured to the swept tubular bumper. Any variation in the swept tubular bumper or the multi-piece bracket results in poor fit and assembly difficulties. If the multi-piece bracket is secured by welding, substantially any poor weld will result in problems, since it may affect compliance with the federal bumper test requirements, such as the front corner impact tests.
Accordingly, there is a need for a bumper bar and method of manufacture solving the aforementioned problems.